A Short Story
by iwritebadbutdealwithit98
Summary: Chat Noir may have a tiny problem... that is, a really big one!


**Yes, the title and summary are both puns. I left a little easter egg in this, nothing essential for the story, but I wonder if anyone will find it.**

"Oh my God, where's my ring?! Plagg? Plagg?!" Adrien scrambled around his room, trying to retrace his steps, "No, no, no!" He fell to his knees, eyes wide, "I lost him, _I lost Plagg_."

Adrien's trash can groaned. It wobbled a bit as two tiny cat ears poked out from the top.

"Plagg!" He ran to the sleepy-eyed kwami, smothering his tiny face with kisses.

"Eeeuck, what's all this about?" Plagg tried to suppress his smile, "I'm fine, although I'm feeling like…"

Adrien stopped to look at Plagg intently. "Feeling like what?"

"Like…" the kwami glanced down to Adrien's hand, "uh, where's the ring?"

"I don't know, but how are you still here?!"

"I only disappear when you intentionally remove it to give me up, or if someone steals it. We need to find it _now_. When did you last see it?"

"Last time I saw it I was changing out of my clothes from the shoot and-" Adrien's eyes darted towards the door, "-oh no."

Marinette was exhausted. Although her excitement was through the roof after hearing that Gabriel wanted to work with her for his next collection - named Angelica Cosmos - her list of to-do's had increased more than twofold. Not that a busy schedule was discouraging enough to forget that she was on her way to achieving her dreams, but the whole thing had caught her a bit off guard.

Sabine caught Marinette's face as she stumbled through the kitchen, "Sweety, I heard the news! A collection!"

"Our girl is gonna be busy, but it'll be worth it, won't it?" Tom wrapped his arm around Sabine's waist.

"Of course, Papa. Actually, I'd better start brainstorming. I'm thinking of the Angelica and Cosmos flowers as inspiration, wish me luck!"

Before Marinette could take another step up to her room, Sabine was placing a tray into her hands, "Wait, take these up with you."

She looked down at the tray; a saucepan filled with steaming hot chocolate, a mug, and a curious pipette dropper in between them.

"Hot chocolate? It's the middle of spring." She didn't even bother questioning the dropper.

"We found a poor little kitten outside the bakery. He was cold and thirsty so we thought we'd take him in, at least for now."

Marinette gasped and went up the stairs as quickly as she could with a tray of hot liquid, "Oh my goodness!"

She started to raise the door to her room pausing. "Wait, you can't give hot _chocolate_ to a kitten." With a confused huff, she finished opening the door, "where is he?"

"Right here, Princess!"

Marinette whipped her head around so quickly she nearly dropped the tray. Her eyebrows furrowed. She knew that voice, and definitely the nickname all too well, but the source was nowhere in sight. "Where?"

"On your chaise."

At first glance, her chaise was empty. It wasn't until Marinette saw her old barbie doll and a crumpled handkerchief that she noticed something moving. Walking up to the chaise, she placed the tray on the floor and knelt down. There he was. Chat Noir cuddled up in a pink cloth with a tiny cup of hot chocolate, sitting next to a doll - enormous in comparison - as if to have a casual discussion with her.

"Chat Noir! What in the world happened to you? Is there an akuma?"

"No, no, I just came by for some _small talk_."

Marinette crossed her arms, "What'd you do?"

"What? It's immediately my fault? Is that how much you _look down on me_?"

She lowered her voice, "Adrien…"

"You know, I'm literally a catbug now! Actually, I'm the perfect size for a _cat_ erpillar."

"What happened?"

Chat Noir sighed in defeat. "Well…"

Adrien flew out the door. Plagg zipped after him down three flights of stairs, through a hallway, and into a room in the very back of the mansion.

His butler turned from the small elevator. "Oh, I was just about to bring your clothes up to you."

"Wait!" Adrien took the basket from his butler and searched through the folded clothes. As the neat piles began tumbling down the butler made a face and sighed, walking away to sort through other clothes.

Plagg peered cautiously from Adrien's shirt, "Did you find anything?"

"No…" Adrien whispered as he checked pocket after pocket, "oh, what's this? A bead?"

He pulled his hand out from the inside pocket of a jacket, index and thumb pinched together. Plagg leaned forward to study the small silver bead sitting on the tip of Adrien's finger. As he scooped it up into his paws his eyes widened.

"Adrien… the ring, it-"

"-Shrank?! Why would you wash your clothes in hot water?"

"There were paint and honey stains all over them…."

Marinette's face scrunched into a confused grimace.

"Don't ask."

She nodded in agreement.

Chat Noir raised his cup, "Could you pour me a fresh cup, it's cold already."

Marinette plucked the Barbie cup from his pea-sized hands. Pouring out the drop of cold liquid onto the tray, she picked up the dropper and pumped fresh hot chocolate into it; with one squeeze the cup was refilled.

She handed the cup back to Chat Noir, "You realize it's eighteen degrees celsius outside, right?"

Chat huddled further into his blanket, "I'm freezing my tail off. The draft is horrible when you're my height."

Marinette found herself reaching her finger over Chat Noir's head and petting him gently, a soft purr starting in his chest. "Speaking of which I don't get how I can hear you so loudly and clearly."

"That's not all," Chat set his cup down and stood up, extending his baton to lower himself by Marinette's knee. With no effort, he lifted her off the ground, "same strength too!"

Marinette flailed her arms, "Ack, ok put me down!" she sighed with relief as she settled back to the ground, Chat quickly returning to his warm blanket and drink. "This just keeps getting weirder. I can hear all the hearts of scientists shattering at your existence. A tiny boy in a leather catsuit isn't who they expected to disprove Einstein and all their other idols."

"I think I'd only be breaking the laws of science if I was a result of science. But I'm not! You're right - this is crazy, anyone would agree - but it's definitely magic. I mean, since when do rings shrink in washing machines?"

"Not to mention how hot would the water have to be… actually, doesn't metal expand in heat?"

Chat Noir nodded. "To make things weirder, the ring is supposed to adjust in size according to its wearer, but it didn't."

Adrien shut the door to his room, cradling the ring that was no larger than an asterisk on a sheet of paper.

"This has never happened before, I'm not really sure what to do," Plagg shook his head, "the last time I was activated, washing machines didn't even exist."

"It should be fine, though, right? It'll resize itself when I try to put it on."

"If it hasn't been, you know, ruined or something."

Adrien lowered his right ring finger and touched it to the small band.

"Adrien? Adrien, where did you go? Adrien!"

"And then all I could think of was getting to you. I got kind of lost for a bit but by the time I got here I was shivering and tired. Your mom found me while throwing out the trash."

"Ugh, I feel like I'm losing my mind," Marinette rested her chin on the chaise.

"Maybe you should see a _shrink_?"

"I could literally flick you across the room right now."

"And if you used your middle finger you'd literally be _flicking me off_."

Marinette groaned, "Oh, grow up."

"I wish I could," Chat's grin fell as Marinette looked legitimately upset, "sorry… I pun when I'm anxious."

"I'm anxious too… what are we gonna do?"

Chat Noir frowned down at his drink. Whether it was a reaction to her question or because his hot chocolate had cooled off again, she wasn't sure, perhaps both.

Marinette raised a brow as he took a sip. "I don't know how sanitary this whole setup is. That'd better not be a handkerchief."

"Oh, this?" Chat shrugged to emphasize the blanket around his shoulders, "no, it's a doll blanket. By the way, I'm really digging this cute doll," he winked.

Marinette snorted, "Don't make it weird. But yes, my grandma found out she could send in a photograph of someone and get a custom doll made. I made the clothes… if that's what you're insinuating."

Chat smiled, "It really tells you something when not even a doll of yourself is prettier than you."

This time she blushed, "Well, let's not get off subject. Although I am a bit concerned about that cup you're drinking out of too, it's years old and it's probably germ-o-topia."

"Your mom sanitized it with a q-tip!"

"Still…" she tilted her head at his small form and pursed her lips, "I don't have time for this."

Chat Noir's ears flattened against his head and she immediately regretted her words. "I know, you have a lot of work to do, I'm sorry… you should get something started, worry about me later."

"I didn't mean that…"

Chat Noir stood again and stretched his arms out like a cross, "I can be your concept model if you want."

"No, Kitty, getting you back to normal is my priority right now," she smiled softly, patting his head with her finger.

He lowered his head, "How?"

Marinette moved her finger to lift his chin, "I know someone who can help."

"You do?"

"Isn't that what you came here for? For help? Come to think of it, what made you come to _me_ first?"

Chat Noir stiffened, "Er- I- there's no easy way to find Ladybug immediately?"

"That's not- well… you're lucky I have weird friends who can help then." Marinette opened her hand in front of him. Chat Noir climbed on and she walked over to the trapdoor. As she walked down the stairs, her parents smiled at her like a tiny superhero sitting cross-legged in the palm of her hand wasn't the most absurd thing they'd ever seen.

"Hello, Marinette!" Wayzz flew up to Marinette's face, peeking around her, "Oh, I could have sworn I sensed both kwamis were on you. I'd thought you brought Chat Noir, I must be losing my touch," he rubbed his head.

Marinette's eyes nearly popped out of her head, only moving to stare down at Chat Noir.

"Oh!" Wayzz followed her gaze, "This is new…"

"W-Wayzz Chat Noir didn't- I- we're-"

Wayzz tilted his head and frowned at her.

"It's ok!" Chat Noir interrupted, wincing, "I… I already knew she was Ladybug."

Marinette froze, "You _knew?_ "

He looked into Marinette's eyes, "Yes… does that bother you?"

Her shoulders slumped, "No, I just… wanted to tell you myself, I'm sorry."

"It's ok," Chat touched his hand to her thumb, "I'm not upset with you, I understand."

Wayzz blinked at them, "Well, I should hope the both of you knew of each other. No matter, this situation is urgent. Master?" he turned to find Fu already watching the three of them, a concentrated look on his face.

"Hmm… how did this happen?" Fu took Chat Noir's hand onto the tip of his finger, squinting at the ring.

"Long story short? It shrank in the washing machine. When I put it on, I shrank too."

"How interesting. And you feel entirely normal? If there were a spell on you, you might have felt weaker."

"I feel completely fine."

"And Plagg?" Fu's face became serious, more and more answers withering away with everything Chat Noir said.

"Normal. He didn't shrink with me."

Fu was silent for a while, then he shook his head. "I'm afraid I don't have a solution-"

"What?!" Marinette cradled Chat closer to herself.

" _Yet_. I'll need time," he shifted his gaze to Chat Noir, "Detransform and give me your ring. I'll study it and do the best that I can. I'd suggest you go home and come back tomorrow, I can't promise I'll be done any time soon."

"Tomorrow?!" Marinette watched Adrien hand his ring to Master Fu, Plagg flying to his side. She frowned at Adrien, still miniature, even next to Plagg.

"Let's go, Marinette," Adrien mumbled.

art link

 **Did you find the easter egg?**

 **Please review, tell me what you think! Also feel free to do art for this, I didn't have time to draw everything I wanted. Draw tiny Adrien, or Adrien kissing Plagg... or maybe draw what you think his photo shoot looked like based on his crazy description xD anything! I'd love to see it**


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